Last year’s return of the Fall Festival was a success! Now, we look forward to this year’s Fall Festival on the weekend of Oct. 20-22 on our St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish grounds. The 11-year hiatus for the festival that ended with last year’s outstanding turnout means that this year’s Fall Festival can only go even bigger and better!
All are welcome to the Fall Festival, from our parish and public alike. There is no admission. The hours are 4-10 p.m. on Friday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. on Saturday, and noon-9 p.m. on Sunday.
There will be activities for all ages, thanks to the tireless efforts of the Fall Festival Committee, chaired by Mike Tennyson.
Festival-goers can enjoy Frisbee Dogs, bungee jumping, rock wall climbing, bouncy houses, ax throwing, and pony rides, among other activities. There will be a 50-50 raffle each day, a golf ball drop, a craft show, dog and cat adoptions with the area Humane Society, and a kids’ obstacle course. Our local fire department will be on-site Saturday so youngsters can get a close-up look at its firefighting gear. There also will be a Child ID booth.
Jacksonville band Highway Jones will perform on Friday and Saturday, and Psycho Magnets from Daytona Beach will perform on Sunday. DJs will provide additional music.
“And there will be lots and lots of food,” Mike says.
Hamburgers, Italian sausage sandwiches, pizza, cotton candy, popcorn, and funnel cakes, as well as beverages, including beer for the adults, will also be available.
All proceeds raised during the festival will be allocated to parish projects — most notably, the ongoing Capital Campaign.
A unique feature of the Fall Festival is that instead of drawing upon a pool of volunteers, our different ministries are responsible for the different activities and booths.
“For example, there are several different ministries who run the food,” Mike says. “They include the Knights of Columbus, the Men’s Club, and the parish office staff. We decided to organize the festival so a particular event or activity is ‘owned’ by a ministry.”
The Fall Festival is undoubtedly a fun parish event, but it also enables us to build our participation in stewardship.
“Probably last year was the largest involvement of volunteers ever seen,” Mike says. “Stewardship is offering time and treasure, so when you volunteer and attend the festival, it all happens.”
Those serving on the Festival Committee are an example of such stewardship.
“By far, it’s a team effort,” Mike says. “The Festival Committee makes all the decisions. It is comprised of active people in the parish in various ministries. It’s not one person who decides anything, and that makes it a better process.”
Additional volunteers are always welcome, and there is ample time to volunteer for the festival!
Those interested in serving during the Fall Festival may contact Mike Tennyson at 904-545-8245 or miketennyson@gmail.com.